“I wasn’t going to ask, but well… This world is so different from ours. How do you know for sure you would be happy here?” Mike asked.
His gaze remained on Marina. Her expression relaxed, and she nodded as she listened to Orion. He could see the relief in her eyes and some of the tension fade from her body.
“Do we ever really know until we try?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. “Yes, this world is different, but falling in love and having a family is the same—as long as you can get over the fact that your new in-laws may be mermaids, dragons, witches, or even monsters, that is. I couldn’t imagine ever returning to our world—especially now,” Jenny replied, looking down at her daughter. “I belong here. What about you? I see the way you look at Marina and the way she looks at you. Life is very different for people here. Someone like Orion could never survive in our world. It would be too dangerous.”
“I honestly never even thought of Marina coming to our world. Hell, I still don’t understand how I got here,” Mike admitted.
“Magna was instrumental in my being here. The day after I talked to you, I returned to Yachats State Park to search for clues regarding Carly’s disappearance. I didn’t find anything, of course. I had made up my mind that it was time to let go.” She shook her head and turned to look over at Orion. “I’ve always loved the water. I walked down to the beach and, a short time later, I heard Dolph, Orion’s oldest son, laughing.” She turned to look back at Mike, a soft smile curved her lips. “He later said he had just about given up on finding a fiery-haired woman to be his mother when he spotted me walking along the beach. When he ran into the water, I followed. I was afraid he would drown. The next thing I knew, I was in this world,” she finished.
“Do you know if there is a way back?” Mike asked.
Jenny shrugged. “I suppose if there is a way here, there is a way back. Carly told me that she was hiking along the trail when she got caught in a thunderstorm. There was a crack in the side of the mountain that opened into what looked like a small cave. She squeezed through it. The next thing she knew, she had stumbled onto Drago’s hoard of treasure.” Jenny chuckled and shook her head. “Carly is the only person I know who could end up in a cave filled with gold and only see the dragon. She told me that Drago told her to pick her treasure wisely and didn’t know what to think when she asked if she could keep him.”
“Do you think the Sea Witch had anything to do with Carly being here?” Mike asked.
“I don’t know. I honestly don’t know what to think of the woman. It is like she has two different personalities. One part of her is good, she helped Juno at one point, while another part of her is pure evil,” she said.
“I will help Marina and her people. If Drago is going to help, he will be here by dawn,” Orion said.
“Remember what Nali said,” Jenny warned.
Orion nodded. “I remember. That is why I am sending requests to the other rulers as well,” he said.
“Other rulers?” Mike asked, confused.
Marina came over and sat down in the chair next to Mike. She still gripped Mr. Bow tightly in her hands. Mike leaned over and took one of her hands in his.
“The Sea King is going to ask for help from the King of the Giants, the Empress of the Monsters, the Pirate King, and the Elementals,” Marina explained.
“The Empress of the Monsters…. I can’t wait to see who else shows up,” Mike repeated with a shake of his head.
Chapter Fourteen
“I hope you will be comfortable. If you need anything, you have only to ask,” the young woman named Karin said with a smile.
Marina nodded. She swallowed when the woman closed the door, suddenly feeling lost and very much alone. Unsure of what to do, she turned around to look at the large, elegant bedroom that she was given. Marina had never been in such an ornately decorated room. A fireplace almost large enough to stand in was centered on one wall. In the hearth, a magical fire merrily crackled and popped, sending out a welcome warmth.
Across from the fireplace was a huge four-poster bed. Each post was elaborately carved to look like coral. Marina noticed a long nightgown and robe across the foot of the bed and a pair of silk slippers on the floor beneath.
There was a set of double doors, standing open, and leading out onto the balcony. On each side of the doors, a column of windows rose from floor to ceiling, giving the occupant a magnificent view of the twinkling lights from the city below. A short distance from the city the ocean waves crashed against the cliffs, the sound was soothing. There was another door on the opposite side of the room that Marina suspected led into the bathing room.
With a loud sigh, she walked over to the fireplace and gazed down at the dancing flames. She hugged Mr. Bow tightly against her chest and bit her lip in uncertainty.
“You know, if you keep holding me this tightly, I might think you are dreaming that I’m Mike,” Mr. Bow dryly stated.
“What? Oh, I’m sorry, Mr. Bow,” Marina murmured, loosening her grip.
“Why don’t you go to him?” Mr. Bow asked.
Marina shook her head. “And do what? Tell him that I want to feel his lips upon mine? That I want to feel his arms wrapped around me, and….”
She blushed and placed Mr. Bow on the table near the fireplace. She closed her eyes as a wave of desire swept through her with such intensity that it caused a physical ache. Perhaps she should tell him that she desired him in a way that she had never felt before. She knew that Mike wanted her. The evidence of his attraction to her had been obvious when he’d kissed her and she’d felt his hips pressed against hers.
“And… what?”
Marina’s eyes flew open, and she gasped and quickly turned at the sound of Mike’s deep voice. Her gaze locked with his. He stood in the open doorway leading out onto the balcony.
“I…,” Marina’s voice faded when she saw the burning desire in his eyes.
“And what, Marina?” he asked again.
The rough need in his voice washed over her. Once again the piercing desire swept through her, causing the ache to grow to a pulsing heat between her legs. He was her match—the other part of herself—he completed her.
“You can see my magic. You can feel it,” she said, hoping he would understand what she was saying.
“I see the colors that surround you wrapping around me.” He lifted his hand up and took a step toward her. He turned his hand, staring at it. Marina could see the colors of her magic, uninhibited by Magna’s spell, swirling around him. “I can feel the connection to you,” he murmured, turning his gaze back to her.
“I need you, Mike. I want you in a way I’ve never wanted to be with another,” she confessed, taking a step toward him.
* * *
They moved slowly toward each other. As the gap between them narrowed, Marina’s magic spun outward, cloaking them in the warmth of her aura. Mike sucked in a deep breath as he felt the unusual power flow through him. This was different from a runner’s high, this was like seeing the universe opened up before you and being able to walk among the stars.
A soft hiss escaped him when Marina finally touched him. Her hands moved up his chest to cup his cheeks. He could see the uncertainty and a trace of vulnerability in her eyes. With a soft moan, he lowered his head and captured her lips.
The spark that had ignited before between them burst into a raging wildfire. Mike could feel Marina’s hands sliding along his skin to his hair. Her fingers splayed, holding him to her while her lips and tongue explored his mouth.
A soft moan escaped him when her hands moved down along his neck and over his shoulders. He tried to pull back, but every time he did, she would follow him. Her hands were driving him crazy. They ran up and down his arms before moving around to his back.
She didn’t stop there. He sucked in a deep breath when she pulled both of his shirts free and slid her hands up under them to his heated flesh. Reaching around, he gripped her wrists and pulled back while his eyes shone with the fire burning inside him.
“I need a shower or a bath or whatever in the hell you take here,” he muttered in frustration.
Marina’s eyes glittered. Her fingers curled around his, and she tugged him toward a door on the opposite side of the room. Mike knew he was in trouble when she opened the door to the bathroom. His resolve to be a gentleman was quickly melting away. If she did what he was hoping for, there would be no stopping or going back.
“Marina,” he tried to warn her.
She looked at him with a fierce expression. “You say you need to bathe. I wish to bathe with you,” she said, pausing in the doorway.
“Honey, if we go in there, I can assure you there is going to be a lot more than bathing going on,” Mike warned.
“I hope there will be,” Marina softly admitted, starting to turn back to step inside.
Mike pulled her to a stop. She turned, a faint expression of doubt creeping into her eyes. He reached up and cupped her cheek.
“This isn’t going to be a one night stand—or even a two night stand. If I make love to you, Marina, it will be for keeps,” he said.
“I… I have never asked to be with a man before, Mike Hallbrook,” Marina admitted, flushing and glancing over his shoulder.
Mike bit back the curse that almost slipped out. He had suspected that Marina was inexperienced, but he hadn’t realized that she might be a virgin. Swallowing, he dropped his hand to his side and clenched his fist. This was going to be a true test of his willpower.
“We come from two different worlds,” Mike said.
Marina’s gaze jerked back to his face. “Does it bother you that we are different?” she asked.
He shook his head. “No, but I want you to be sure. I meant what I said, Marina—especially now. If I take you tonight, this is serious,” he said, emphasizing the last word.
“When you take me tonight, we will be together as one,” she retorted in a quiet voice.
“Damn woman, you are going to drive me over the edge,” Mike cursed, wrapping his hand around her braid and capturing her lips again.
He didn’t resist the tug this time when she pulled him into the bathroom. His mind played through all the ways he wanted to make love to her. Knowing that this was her first time, he was going to do everything he could to make sure she enjoyed it. That included making sure she knew that he liked to have a little fun. He had always been an intense—but selective—lover. Something told him that Marina, even inexperienced as she was, would have no trouble keeping up with him.
Breaking the kiss, he stepped back. His eyes glittered with promise, and his cock felt like he could drive nails with it. It had been a long time since he was this aroused. If he didn’t take some control of the situation soon, it could quickly spiral into raw, primitive sex.
“Take off your clothes,” he ordered.
“Only if you also remove yours,” she countered, lifting her chin.
Mike raised an eyebrow at her daring tone. The curve of her lips proved that she might be innocent of the actual act, but she knew what was about to happen. His suspicion proved accurate when her eyes twinkled with mischief, and she started to unfasten her top.
“I may live in a small village, but I have visited the capital city many times. What I have not seen during my trips, my mother and grandmother made sure to add to my education when I was old enough and curious enough to ask. Grandmother was a little more enlightening than my mother,” she explained with a wicked grin.
“How enlightening?” Mike asked, his gaze mesmerized by her fingers as she continued to undress.
“Very,” she informed him with an inviting look.
Marina undid the last button and turned her back to him before she slowly shrugged her blouse off one shoulder. She paused to glance at him with a teasing smile before slipping it off the other shoulder. He swallowed when he saw that she didn’t wear anything underneath her top. Her fingers moved to her belt, and she slowly tugged it free from her pants.
When she held it up in the air, Mike reached out and took the belt, wrapping it around his hand. She turned her head to stare at him again over her shoulder.
“Grandmother told me that to receive great passion and pleasure, you need to enjoy it the same way that you enjoy a good wine,” she murmured.
Mike swallowed. Her fingers were moving down along her side to her leggings. He could see the curve of her creamy breast, but not the tantalizing nipple that made his mouth water when he thought of what the hard tip would feel like when he sucked on it.
“And how do you… enjoy a good wine?” he asked in a rough voice.
“By teasing your taste buds, having the right dish to go with it, and savoring it so that it lasts all night,” she whispered.
Mike’s soft rumble of approval echoed through the bathroom when Marina pulled off each boot as she spoke before pushing down her leggings. They slid down her long legs to pool at her ankles. She lifted one foot and pulled it free before kicking off the other leg.
“Kelia prepared my bath. Will you join me, Mike?” Marina asked.
Mike watched her walk over to the raised platform. She stepped into the bath, and turned, allowing him to see her for the first time.
She was slender from the challenges of the last year, but still completely feminine. Her breasts were small and firm. She had a short waist, but long legs that made his hips jerk at the thought of them wrapped around him. His gaze traveled down to the patch of dark brown curly hair between her legs.
His mouth watered at all the wonderful things he planned for that part of her body. He quickly pulled off his shirts, untied and pulled off his boots and socks, and shucked his pants. His wicked smile lit up his eyes when he heard her swiftly inhaled breath at the first sight of his throbbing cock.
“I think it is time that I began enjoying my wine,” he teased, climbing up onto the platform.
“Ye… Yes, it is,” she agreed, sinking back into the water.
“How hot do you like it, Marina?” Mike asked, stepping into the water.
“The… the water?” she mumbled, her eyes glued to his cock.
Mike chuckled, sank down into the water, and reached for her. “The sex,” he murmured, pressing his lips against her neck.
A soft moan echoed in the room. “Hot… very, very hot,” she said, unaware of anything but his lips against her heated flesh.
Chapter Fifteen
Marina suspected she knew what Mike meant about hot. If her suspicions were correct, she was ready. Her body felt like it was on fire. She never expected that teasing him the way she had would cause her body to react the way it did.
She tilted her head back and shivered despite the heated water swirling around them. She parted her legs to straddle Mike when he pulled her toward him. When she felt his cock brush across her womanhood, a shaft of intense desire pierced her, starting between her legs and moving through her entire body with a speed that left her gasping.
Instinctively, she gripped his shoulders and rose up on her knees to join them together. A groan of frustration escaped her when he reached out and wrapped his hands around her waist—effectively stopping her from impaling herself on him. On a positive note, the move aligned her breast with his mouth.
“You make my insides melt,” she whimpered.
He turned his head and locked his lips around her straining nipple.
“Yes!” she cried.
The feel of his lips tugging on her pebbled tips felt so much better than when she used her fingers. Bowing her head, she watched him roll his tongue over the taut, rosy crest.
“The other… It is feeling neglected,” she ordered hoarsely.
Mike’s soft, warm breath caressed her cool flesh when he released her. “You are a bossy little thing. I like it,” he growled before capturing her other nipple.
“Oh! It does things between my legs,” she said, her nails curling against his shoulders.
“Let’s see what other feelings I can make you have,” he murmured against her breast.
“Othe
r…,” she choked out on a hiccup.
The other was his hand moving from her waist to the mound between her legs. His fingers teased her, running along the soft folds that protected her. When he brushed against her swollen nub, she quivered.
“I’m going to wash you, Marina. I want to take my time exploring you,” Mike said against her damp skin.
“Can we… can we not wait to do the exploring later?” she breathed in an unsteady voice.
“Oh, no, my impatient little witch. The first time is all about torture by pleasure,” he chuckled, turning her in his arms. “And I plan to torture you until you scream.”
Marina gripped the side of the large tub and held on when he ran his hands down along her arms and pressed them to the rim of the tub. His hands slid back down and he gripped her hips, pulling her buttocks up and spreading her legs. Her fingers curled when he ran both hands over the cheeks of her ass.
“I’ve always been a breast and butt man,” he informed her.
“I… That is nice… good… to know…,” she replied. “What are you going to do?” she asked, licking her lips after she heard the water splash when he rose up.
“Will you trust me?” he asked.
Marina’s eyes locked with his in the mirror on the far wall. She could see everything he was doing. There was something extremely erotic about watching what was happening while experiencing it. She followed him with her eyes as he picked up a bar of the lightly scented soap. The aroma of fresh Evergreens reached her when he dampened the bar and began rubbing it between his hands.
He replaced the bar and turned those mesmerizing hands on her next. Goosebumps rose over her skin before quickly fading when he began to run his soapy hands up under her from her lower hips along her stomach and up to her breasts where he teased them to full peaks again. A gasp escaped her when he tweaked them.
“Sometimes a little light pain can lead to a great deal of pleasure,” he explained.
“How can pain…? Oh! That is how,” she exclaimed when he tweaked them again before pinching her nipples and rolling his fingers.